In Brief

Wynveen international integrateS into ottevanger milling engineerS

The Triott Group has announced that the intensive cooperation between Ottevanger Milling Engineers B.V. and Wynveen International will be logically completed by the full integration of Wynveen into Ottevanger on 1 April 2021. The group states that merging the activities of both companies will enable them to offer a comprehensive and versatile range of services and products through the Ottevanger organisation. Additionally, that integrating Wynveen and Ottevanger will increase the levels of knowledge sharing, innovation and service the companies offer their customers.

The Wynveen and Ottevanger brands, both of which are members of the Triott Group, have grown closer in recent years. They have been cooperating intensively for many years, often for the same customers. To strengthen their presence in the market, reinforcing their cooperation with a further integration is a logical step. Stronger together under one strong name: Ottevanger As from 1 April 2021, Wynveen will fully integrate with Ottevanger Milling Engineers (OME). The location in Heteren will become an OME site and retain its function as an engineering and production site. All the employees at the Heteren site will be employed by Ottevanger Milling Engineers B.V. when Valsoft Corporation approached us to become part of their family of companies. Collectively we can make the Process Control division a real success,” said Bill Wright, CEO – Datastor Systems Ltd.

“Datastor Systems has many years of experience in supplying Process Control Solutions (PCS). Utilising leading edge technology, we provide systems that control the process more efficiently and effectively. Providing real-time data allows for management and operators to make informed decisions on process changes. We cover a wide area of the manufacturing process sector including Food & Drink, Animal Feed, Feed & Food Pre-Mixes, Surface Coatings, Building Products, Pharmaceutical to name but a few. 24/7 Worldwide support is provided giving our customers peace of mind that we are always available when needed to assist in keeping their manufacturing facility functioning.”

aiC lobbying Win on molaSSeS

After four months of lobbying Defra and the Department of International Trade (DIT), the AIC can confirm that tariffs will be dropped on imported molasses from 20th May 2021.

When the UK Government set up its own tariff policy on 1st January 2021, it applied a different tariff to the EU on imports of molasses from 3rd countries. As a result, molasses imported to the UK since 1st January faced a higher tariff than the EU. This meant higher molasses costs for suppliers and farmers, who use molasses in their livestock feed.

After working with Defra and DIT to have this corrected, including submissions of evidence by AIC and members, the Government has stated that this tariff will revert to 0% from 20th May 2021. This means that importers and customers of molasses based products will not be placed at a competitive disadvantage. Over the past months, AIC has met with MPs, Ministers and civil servants to have this corrected, and has worked with devolved administrations and farming groups to lobby for this change. It is welcome that the Government has listened and corrected this tariff.

The new UK molasses tariff will not have a trigger price mechanism, such as the EU’s, and it will instead be a straight 0% tariff on all imports.

The change in legislation was laid as a Statutory Instrument (SI) last week, The Government’s explanatory memorandum can be found online. Further briefings will be made available to AIC members shortly.

Background information

In the past, UK imported Cane and Beet molasses from third countries were monitored by the European Commission to determine the Representative price on an at least monthly basis of all shipments more than 500mt. If this determined average price fell below the Trigger price set by the Commission, then a tariff would become payable. The last Trigger price was €7.9 per 100Kg (€79per mt.) for Cane molasses and €8.2 per 100Kg (€82 per mt.) for Beet molasses. This has meant that no tariff has been triggered for some time in the EU.

The UK however did not translate this trigger mechanism across into its own tariff schedule, and since the 1st January a Tariff of £0.20 per 100Kg (£2 per mt) was payable on imported molasses from outside the EU (such as USA), a cost that is not incurred by EU importers and their farming customers. For the EU, the tariff only applies when the value of molasses from third countries falls to very low level; levels that have not been seen for a considerable time. The tariff was expected to add £1-1.2m of extra cost to importers based on import levels.

valSoFt Corporation inC. CompleteS the aCQuiSiton oF dataStor SyStemS ltd

Valsoft Corporation Inc., a Montreal-based company specializing in the acquisition and development of vertical market software businesses, is pleased to announce the successful acquisition of Datastor Systems Ltd on February 1, 2021.

“We are extremely proud to welcome Datastor to our growing portfolio of process control software companies. Datastor has built a stellar reputation in the industry and we look forward to supporting their long-term growth. We believe the acquisition will bring long-term benefits to both its customers and team. We look forward to innovating together to create world class process control solutions,” said Joseph Khoubbieh, Head of M&A at Valsoft.

Datastor will continue to operate independently with its existing management from its Congleton office. This acquisition will have minimal impact on its day-to-day operations, if any.

“Having been a successful independent company for over 40 years, providing ‘mission critical’ software solutions to the manufacturing sector, it was time to consider a succession plan. We were delighted ConCern over propioniC aCid SupplieS

Industry concern about a potential shortage of propionic acid this year has been amplified by the fact that many UK mixed farms are planning to feed more home-grown cereals to their livestock to offset rising boughtin feedstock prices, reports Azelis Animal Nutrition.

“Consequently, some farms may have to investigate an alternative grain preservation approach this season to safeguard valuable stored cereals from spoilage with yeasts and moulds,” says Kirstie Jones from the company.

Ms Jones says that drying your grain before storage is one option to consider. “This reduces its moisture content to make the stored crop less susceptible to mould, but this can be costly and difficult – certainly if you don’t already have a grain drier.”

Fortunately, she points out that a range of buffered propionic acid-based products are still available. “However, following poor usage experience in the past perhaps, some farmers may not trust buffered propionic acid preservative products to do the job.”

But she stresses that not all buffered propionic acid products are the same. “Some of the newer alternatives, such as ProSid™ MI 700 – which is based on highly concentrated propionic acid and propionic glycerol esters – are actually very effective at preventing spoilage due to microbial activity.

“Compared with straight propionic acid or the more traditional ammonium propionate buffered propionic acids, these esterified products are formulated in a way that offers consistent distribution throughout the grain. Importantly, they also offer longer lasting, more persistent protection from mould activity because they are less volatile. In addition, they are much safer to handle and don’t come with a pungent smell,” she adds.

“This innovative esterified product option, produced by Perstorp, is now available in the UK from Azelis Animal Nutrition.”

aFriCan SWine Fever: riSKS From Feed, bedding and tranSport

EFSA’s latest advice on African swine fever looks at the risk of the virus being introduced to non-affected regions of Europe via pathways such as feed, bedding materials and empty pig transport vehicles returning from affected areas.

A model was developed to rank the risk from the different pathways using results from an expert knowledge elicitation (EKE). The EKE was based on evidence from a literature search and a public consultation.

Seventeen products and matrices were assessed and ranked for their relative likelihood of becoming contaminated with the virus in ASF-affected areas and infecting pigs in non-affected areas. Compound feed (mash, pellets), feed additives and contaminated vehicles were the highest ranked.

To reduce the risk of the virus being introduced to pig farms through feed, bedding materials and transport vehicles, the scientific opinion recommends strict adherence to relevant decontamination and storage processes for all products moved from ASFaffected areas to unaffected areas.

The full report can be viewed online.

prevent buFFer Feeding eroding Winter Forage StoCKS

New research shows that replacing a proportion of grass silage in buffer feed with straw and a molasses blend can costeffectively help preserve forage stocks for the coming winter according to ED&F Man.

“Dairy and beef farmers need to strike a balance between adequate buffer feeding to maintain summer production and the need to preserve sufficient forage to help reduce winter purchased feed demands,” comments Georgina Chapman, Technical Support Manager at molasses blends specialists ED&F Man. “The key to this is accepting that at some stage supplementary buffer feeding will be required, to consider the impact it might have on silage stocks for the winter and to plan ahead. Our trials with dairy cows confirm it can be efficient to preserve silage stocks and feed an alternative.”

New ED&F Man research carried out at The Agri-EPI South West Dairy Development Centre with Agri-EPI’s operational partners, Kingshay Dairy Consultants, shows that including a proportion of straw and Regumix, a palatable high energy and protein molasses based liquid feed in the buffer feed for dairy cows, allows production to be maintained while preserving silage stocks.

The trial compared a traditional grass silage buffer with a diet containing a proportion of straw and molasses blend. In both diets the grazing intakes were the same and the total dry matter intake was unchanged. Performance was then compared between cows on the two diets.

“Over a six-week period there was no difference in yield between cows fed the initial buffer and those where straw and Regumix was included,” Ms Chapman continues. “The cows on the molasses buffer milked as well as cows on the traditional bufffer but with slightly better compositional quality. There was no difference in body condition changes between the two groups.

“There was a saving of 7.5kg of silage per cow per day. Assuming 200 cows were fed the new buffer for a typical 18 week period, the total silage saved over this time would be a potential 200 tonnes. This would then be available to increase the silage fed per cow per day over the winter feeding period, or ensure stocks are sufficient for a longer housed period.”

Ms Chapman says another advantage of molasses and straw is that they are ingredients which are easily stored on farm, are not subject to waste unlike some moist ingredients and if not used as a buffer can be used as part of the winter diet.

“Planning now to include a proportion of molasses and straw in the buffer feed could be one way to maximise silage production and availability, maintain production from grazing and help reduce the impact of higher feed costs,” Ms Chapman advises.

improving piglet Survival through maternal nutrition

New research, commissioned by ABN, raises the potential to offer improved piglet welfare and significantly increased productivity from dietary changes for hyperprolific sows.

Pig breeding companies have been successfully selecting for increased sow prolificacy for many years, with litter size increasing by approximately 0.3 piglets per sow, per year over the last ten years alone.

While this remarkable improvement contributes significantly to the profitability of the pig industry, an increase in litter size has inevitably brought with it an increase in vulnerable piglets, with a subsequent reduced chance of survival.

ABN has devoted a major part of its research effort into increasing survival chances, particularly of the smaller piglet, by investigating the effect of maternal nutrition and identifying specific risk factors associated with reduced piglet survival.

“Increasing litter size can mean an increase in litter weaned weight, but is often associated with a reduction in average piglet weaned weight,” explains Dr Steve Jagger, senior pig nutritionist at ABN. “Similarly, a larger litter is also associated with a greater variation in piglet birth weight and hence an increased number of small piglets,” he adds.

It has long been established that in general smaller piglets at birth have a lower survival chance, especially if they are less than 1kg live weight. This is mainly due to the lower energy reserves of the smaller piglet and the difficulty in controlling body temperature.

“The intake of sufficient colostrum is vital for optimum piglet health and growth. It has been established that a piglet should consume at least 200g of colostrum to significantly reduce mortality. However, the quantity of colostrum produced by hyperprolific sows is thought not to increase as litter size increases, therefore the quantity available for each piglet is reduced.” says Dr Jagger.

To further understand how maternal nutrition may affect piglet survival, ABN commissioned a PhD at the University of Leeds, conducted by Dr Hannah Davis and overseen by Professor Helen Miller, over a period of four years.

Published in the journal of Animal Feed Science and Technology, the work evaluated concepts that may improve survival chances, including determining antibody and colostrum yield, and assessing piglet performance.

A total of 279 multiparous sows were used across four experiments, receiving either a control or an experimental diet.

The work found a significant increase in colostrum and immunoglobulin yield. An increase in colostrum intake has been shown to increase weaned weight, and the effect is proportionally greater with piglets of smaller birth weight.

Each trial at the University of Leeds showed the treatment group associated with an increase in colostrum production consistently increased piglet weight, both at 24 hours after birth, and at weaning.

Dietary changes increased colostrum by as much as 28%, and increased the concentration of immunoglobulins by almost 10% leading to increased colostrum and immunoglobulin intake by the piglets.

Paul Toplis, a technical expert with 45 years of experience of putting science into practice in the pig industry, views this as having the potential to be one of the more significant contributions to success in pig production, around the world.

“These results confirm the literature where an improvement in colostrum intake has increased piglet weight through to weaning. The research breaks new ground and confirms ABN’s determination to follow through on this considerable promise, by focusing research and development in this area,” he says.

“If we can improve survival by as little as 1%, that means an extra 125 pigs weaned per year from a 500-sow unit, or an extra 100,000 pigs weaned per year in GB alone,” adds Mr Toplis, who has worked in association with ABN for the last 25 years.